Considered by the great German classicist Ulrich von Wilamowitz-Moellendorff to be the exemplary introduction to tragedy, Heracles by Euripides is the heartbreaking story of the greatest hero of Greece and his return from Hades. Heracles arrives back from the underworld having completed his final Labor just in time to save his family from execution by the tyrant Lycus. But Hera, who despises the hero, has arranged for him to go mad. In his madness, Heracles slays his wife and children. In this course, we will read the entirety of Euripides’ Heracles, and students will acquire the basic competencies necessary for reading Attic tragedy and the knowledge necessary to dive more deeply into the corpus, including what order to read them in, what resources exist for students, how to tackle the difficult choral passages, how to overcome frustrations raised by reading, and much more.
Students enrolling in this course should already understand spoken Ancient Greek, possess the ability to ask and answer questions in Ancient Greek, and a willingness to spend the ~5 hours per week studying and reading which is necessary for success.
Course details:
- Sessions last 1.5 hours
- 1 session per week
- Course lasts 14 weeks
- Term runs Aug. 30, 2026 – Dec. 12, 2026
How ALI courses work:
- ALI courses are live, online classes run by ALI Ancient Greek professors. Learn Ancient Greek from anywhere.
- Classes run on a trimester basis.
- Fall: September – December
- Spring: January – April
- Summer: May – August
- We want to make sure you’re completely satisfied. If you don’t love your first Ancient Greek class, we guarantee a 100% refund. After that, in weeks 2 – 4, refunds will be made on a pro rata basis, based on however many class sessions you’ve attended. We cannot issue refunds after the fourth week of classes.
- Read more on our FAQ page and check out our academic calendar page to see a more detailed schedule
